TNPSC Current affairs Mar. 13, 2017

Chemical from Fish – cure blindness

Scientists have discovered a chemical in the zebra fish brain that helps to cure blindness in humans.

What is it?

The discovery raises the possibilities that human retinas can be induced to regenerate, naturally repairing damage caused by degenerative retinal diseases and injury, including age related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa.

The findings showed that the levels of GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid), a neurotransmitter, best known for its role of calming nervous activity, drop when the unique self-repair process kicks in.

Background:

The structure of the retinas (the light-sensing tissue at the back of the eye) of fish and mammals are basically the same and a reduction in GABA might be the trigger for retinal regeneration.

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Topic : Political Science – Public Awareness, General Administraiton

Synchronous elephant count in four States in May

India’s most human-elephant conflict-prone region, four states Odisha, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand have decided to count elephants synchronously between May 9 and 12.

Key facts:

This will be the first regional synchronous elephant census with an identical set of rules for direct and indirect counting methods.

The synchronised census will indicate the size, distribution, structure and density of the elephant population in the region.

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Topic : Science – New Inventions on Science and Technology

NASA study and explore Jupiter’s icy moon

NASA’s “Europa Clipper” set to launch in the 2020s will study the Jupiter’s icy moon Europa.

Key facts:

The mission plan includes 40 to 45 flybys, during which the spacecraft would image the moon’s icy surface at high resolution and investigate its composition and the structure of its interior and icy shell.

The ultimate aim of Europa Clipper is to determine if Europa is habitable, possessing all three of the ingredients necessary for life: liquid water, chemical ingredients, and energy sources sufficient to enable biology.

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Topic : Science – New Inventions on Science and Technology

Lost’ Chandrayaan-1 found by NASA

India’s first mission to Moon, the Chandrayaan-1, that was considered lost almost eight years back, has been found orbiting the Moon some 200 kilometers above the lunar surface.

How was it found?

A new technological application of interplanetary radar operated by scientists used at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California released the report.

It has been successfully located spacecraft orbiting the moon in the status of one active and one dormant.

To find a spacecraft 380,000 km away, scientists used the 70-metre antenna at NASA’s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California to send out a powerful beam of microwaves towards the moon.

Then the radar echoes bounced back from lunar orbit were received by the 100-metre Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia.

JPL’s orbital calculations indicated that Chandrayaan-1 is still circling some 200 km above the lunar surface.

About Chandrayaan-1:

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) lost communication with Chandrayaan-1 on August 29, 2009, barely a year after it was launched on October 22, 2008.

The Chandrayaan-1 mission performed two operation namely, high-resolution remote sensing of the moon in visible, near infrared (NIR) low energy X-rays and high-energy X-ray regions.